Child sex offender 'threatened to drown girl's puppy'

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-51879014

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A "vile" child sex offender threatened to drown a girl's puppy if she told anybody about his abuse of her.

Kenneth Mantle, 62, was jailed for 24 years at Grimsby Crown Court after being found guilty of sexually abusing a girl under 16.

Mantle used various threats against the girl to get her do what he asked and to prevent her from telling anyone about the offences, police said.

The abuse happened between 1980 and 1992 in North East Lincolnshire.

Mantle, of Willingham Street, Grimsby, was convicted of five counts of rape of a girl under 16 and other sexual offences against his victim.

Det Con Nick Pearce from Humberside Police said: “Mantle is an absolutely loathsome and vile man who showed no care and little regard for the young girl, using violent and heartless threats to terrify her into not telling anyone about the horror that he was putting her through.

“His actions were absolutely incomprehensible; he inflicted untold suffering for his own perverse gratification, continuing even now by making the woman endure the harrowing ordeal of a trial.

“However, the bravery the woman in this case has shown has been highly commendable and I want to offer my thanks for her patience and understanding throughout both the investigation process and court proceedings, as they have been long and complex processes."

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